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Show LABOR IN AMERICA Industrial Conditions Seen Through British Glasses. WHAT EXPERTS HAVE TO SAY Iron and Steel Industry Taken ns a Text foi a Report by the Commission Commis-sion Trom the Utltlsli lion Trade Association, Which Visited United Stntes a Few Months Since Workmen Work-men Enjoy a Larger Measuro of Independence They Aro Encouraged Encour-aged .and Rewarded for Inventions Washington f-ept J7 Lslw conditions condi-tions In the United Stales is the sub Jeet of a chapter In the mentis Published Pub-lished tepmt of the commission from the Hrlllsh Iron Trade nssoiliitlnn which visited the United St ties a few months slnre suel retorted iiimn Industrial In-dustrial conditions nnd especlnlls those relating tn lion and steel Discussing Dis-cussing this Important question of Ihe condition of labor In the United Slates ns viewed from the standpoint of the English citizen and 111 inufui Inter the ruort sass "Ih" e-nndillons of labot In Ihe United States Is another mittet that his ro-celveil ro-celveil 11 good deal of attention ns be-Ing be-Ing fundamental In the progiess of American Industries If not also In the I relative progices of some of our own Tho Inlluence of trudo unionism Is not nciilj so strong nor so uggtesslve In the United Slntes ns In firm! Hrltnln The reason ls largely capable of mathematical math-ematical demonstration "A recent report bs the New 'S.ork Department of labor shows tint while in tlreat Hrltnln nt a lecent el ite there were 180" 000 trade unionists their were onls 1 000 000 In the United Slates and Canada fnn. nbout twite the pop illation, while derm my Is oiedltid with 115000, nr nbout one hnlf the Hrlllsh Pguie. FREEDOM OP LAHOIt The almost nbrtilute freedom of la-lior la-lior has been tho chief Instrument wherehs It has won such conquests In Ihe Held nf Industrial eennoms during tho last quarter of a ccnturs In all countries Industrial processes have been greatls cheapened during that erlod. but In America the 1 lie aliening appears tn have been carried further than any. where olse WAOES OT 1RONWOHKUHS "According lo llgures recently made public by Mr W llllum (ionett a roll-roller roll-roller In an up-to-date rail mill Is pnld less than 1 per cent per Inn for rolling, roll-ing, against I" lontu nt a not Mrs remote re-mote date Within that time, ngaln, a wire rod roller hns seen his earnings per ton reduced fiom S2 12 tn 12 cents per ton nnd set ho cams larger wogea at the lower figure, while C cents Is paid today for heating billets tn make wire rods, against KO cents during tho period refened lo 'If rod rollers,' suss Mr Oarret, 'vveto to retolvo the same wages per ton Hint Ibey did twents sears ago, Ihes would earn St2i per dis. what mi'n pnonuci:. 'Tho average output per worker has In all rases Increased enormously At the nine Edgar Thompson blast fur-nices fur-nices I was (old that K.OO men are em-plosed em-plosed for an output of 24 TOO Ions per week. Including nil Iho hands ein-plosed ein-plosed In handling nnd stocking rnvv materials, transport, elc This gives nn average nf 151 tons of pig Iron pet man per week, or 703 5 tons per man per annum The minimum wnge paid nt the blast furnaces Is 11 f,0 per day of twelve hrntrs I illd not iret the average wuso pile! at these works, but Mr. A C Dlnkes. tho manager of the Hotnestend works, recently tcatlllod thnt tho average av-erage eurniriRs nf (ho workmen (here, excluding otllelals Is J2 71 per day, while the earnings of rollt rs and healers heal-ers rise lo U per das. Wares, In short, lire gencralls so good and Hie men havo (heir fulures so much In their own hands, th it Ihes have every encouragement to do the best thes cnn both for their emplosers nnd fot them- WOHKMEN INDEPENDENT. "The humnn factor and (he personal eqtiadnn appear to count In the United stales for moro than they generally do In Europe. Workmen appear to enjoy a larger measure of Independence, Independ-ence, based on the knowledge of the fuct that work Is mom easy to obtain than In older countries, that they are nble, as a rule, to save money nnd lire, therefore, less dependent thin when living as Is not unusual In Km ono, from hand to mouth... and that they ato living under a polltlcul regime which Is founded on demon ntic principles. ' Two features nf Iho relations of emplosers em-plosers and emplosed may be named as exercising a powerful Inllueuie nn the amity of their connection -the first, the encouragement nnd reward of woikmens Inventions nnd the second, sec-ond, the rindlness with which workmen of exceptional capacity can themselves become emploser nnd capitalists" |
